The proposed research is concerned with advancing our understanding of intrinsic motivation. Healthy human beings are active organisms who are continually interacting with and adapting to the environment. The motivation for this on-going interaction is intrinsic motivation. It is based in the organisms' need to be competent and self-determining in relation to the environment. I am proposing to investigate three questions, though the first is most important and represents the heart of the proposal. I. Recent experiments have demonstrated that under some circumstances extrinsic rewards decrease intrinsic motivation. Yet, of course extrinsic rewards are an integral part of our society. It therefore becomes critical to consider the question of how can one maintain or enhance intrinsic motivation in a situation where extrinsic rewards are administered? This question will be investigated both in the laboratory and in the field. The latter will be done in elementary schools. II. I am working toward outlining a general theory of human motivation using an information theoretical approach. The second question is part of that effort. I propose to investigate the valence properties underlying intrinsically motivated behavior. III. Finally, I propose to consider the nature of the task and people's perception of the task as they mediate the effects of extrinsic rewards on intrinsic motivation. This has not yet been done, though several areas of research are relevant; including insufficient justification, task enhancement and inequity.